Black Coffee
by theRahma
Summary: Faced with a financial crisis, Shizuo turns to a stranger working at a coffee shop with raven hair and piercing, red eyes. But can he trust him? And will this exchange be the only one between the two? Or will there be... more? A/U, rated M for later chapters.
1. Connected

"Shizuo… Maybe you need a break…" the soothing, calm voice of the blond's brother spoke through the phone that was shaking in Shizuo's hand.

"W-what do you mean, a break?! This is fucking…!" Shizuo growled, beyond upset at his financial situation right now.

Kasuka sighed on the other end of the phone, his voice still calm, monotonous, as he said, "How about we go out for coffee? I'm free for a few hours, as are you."

Shizuo was silent for a while before he said gruffly, "Fine." He closed his phone and shoved it into his pocket, looking around at his messy apartment as he ran a shaking hand through his hair, irritation clear on his face.

A few minutes later, his famous, well-respected brother knocked on the door. Striding over to the door, Shizuo opened it for him, looking down at the actor wearing sunglasses and a hat to conceal his identity. "Kasuka."

Kasuka nodded once, "Shizuo… Shall we get going?"

Shizuo nodded and stepped out of the messy apartment, closing the door behind him as he walked beside his brother to where he predicted was a coffee shop, since they were getting coffee. He shook his head. _If this is my train of thought, it's no wonder I can't find a job._

There was a silence lingering above them as they walked through the city, everyone quickly avoiding the monster of Ikebukuro as he strolled down the streets. Kasuka was thankful he was with Shizuo. The focus on the monster took focus away from the actor, limiting his chances of being recognized and flooded by fans and paparazzi.

Finally, the brothers reached the coffee shop, and Kasuka politely held the door open for his older brother. Shizuo actually had to lower his head a little to enter the small building. Inside, the atmosphere was warm and welcoming, with soft, unique music playing in the background.

There was a barista at the cash register, but his back was turned to the customers as he was standing on his tiptoes, trying to reach a container of coffee. His fur-trimmed coat and black shirt rode up, causing part of his lower back and waist to show. Shizuo's eyes widened at the pale, milky skin before his gaze quickly shifted when the young man finally grabbed the container and turned around.

"Ah, hello," the young man's smooth voice called out.

Shizuo's eyes met the young man's, and he was completely drawn by their profound, red depths. The young man's jet black hair framed his round, pale face perfectly, and his little smile revealed mystery and, most suspiciously to Shizuo, hidden intentions. There black lip ring that the barista was sporting against his thin lips. The tall blond actually took a deep breath in before saying shakily, "Hi."

"Well~," started the young man, placing his elbow on the counter, his cheek in his palm as he looked up at the two brothers with unwavering interest, "what can I get you two gentlemen today?"

Kasuka nodded in acknowledgement, telling the young man, "Just a medium coffee, please."

The raven nodded and pressed a few keys on the cash register before looking up at Shizuo. "And what about you, blondie?"

Shizuo frowned. Besides the teasing "blondie" remark, something was off about this guy. The way he smiled, the way he looked, the way he spoke. But he managed to say gruffly, "Large coffee with…" he looked over at the selection of pastries before deciding, "a vanilla cupcake."

"Aaww, how cute~. A cupcake." The raven's voice was teasing, a playful glint in his eyes as he maintained eye contact with Shizuo even as he pressed the keys on the cash register. Shizuo glared, his face flushing with anger and embarrassment at this stranger's teasing, demeaning aura. The young man with the black hair finally broke the eye contact to look at Kasuka. "Shall this be one order, or shall I separate it into two?"

Kasuka nodded. "Yes, one order. I'll take care of it."

Shizuo objected, embarrassed that his brother is paying for him. "Huh? No. I-I have enough money… I'm not _that _broke, you know!"

Kasuka shook his head as he quickly pulled out the money and paid it to the waiting man, who was watching them with interest and amusement. The barista smoothly placed the money into the cash register and handed Kasuka the change. "You can take a seat, and I'll be back with your orders soon."

Kasuka nodded and led the way to one of the tables, Shizuo grumbling behind him. When they were seated, Shizuo said, trying to control his anger, "You didn't have to do that… I did have enough money to pay for myself."

But his brother was as calm and emotionless as ever as he replied, "Shizuo, it's not a matter of you having enough money or not… It's just a gesture of courtesy."

Based on his tone, one would never be able to decipher the gesture as one of courtesy, but the younger brother really did care for Shizuo and wanted to be kind to him, especially considering his current financial crisis. A long yet comforting silence fell over the two, with Shizuo staring at the barista who was busy making the coffee and Kasuka staring out the window at the busy city.

The barista finally came, carrying the two coffee cups in his hands and the cupcake on his shoulder, his balance and grace perfect as he made his way across the café and to the two brothers, setting the coffee down in front of their respective purchasers and the cupcake in front of Shizuo, biting down on his lip, his teeth gently scraping the lip ring. Shizuo's eyes were closely focused on that, everything else melting away.

"… Shizuo?" his brother's voice snapped Shizuo out of his momentary trance, and he blinked as he looked at Kasuka.

"Huh?"

"Did you hear him? He's asking if you need anything in your coffee."

Shizuo cleared his throat, saying with embarrassment as he looked down at the black coffee, "Ah. Yes, milk. And five spoons of sugar."

The barista's eyes widened, but the smirk remained on his face. "So first you order a cupcake, and now you want… coffee-flavored, sugary milk. Interesting~."

Shizuo looked up from his cup of coffee to glare at him, this young man having an unreal way to seriously piss him off. "What the hell does it matter to you, you… you… f-flea?!"

The so-called flea blinked, though his amused expression remained. "Flea?"

"Yes. Fucking flea. Go do as you're told and stop messing with me!"

Kasuka interjected, though he was not frazzled or anything close to it. "Shizuo, please remember where we are and who you're speaking with…"

"_He _should remember who he's speaking with. I'm the damn customer."

The barista smirked widely before walking away and coming back with two containers, pouring a small amount of creamer into Kasuka's cup of coffee and adding a spoon of sugar before pouring a larger amount of milk into Shizuo's cup and adding five spoons of sugar. "Good enough~?"

Kasuka nodded, but Shizuo actually took a sip and was silent for a bit before he grunted.

Just to be a tease, the dark haired man asked, "So what's that supposed to mean?"

"It means yes, you louse. Now go away."

The barista smoothly moved away from the table and went back to the cash register, a very interested expression on his face, his smirk wider than ever.

"Damn," said Shizuo gruffly, trying to calm himself down. "I don't think anyone has ever pissed me off as much as that barista guy has."

Kasuka took a slow sip of his coffee before asking, "So… how many jobs have you applied to so far…?"

"Sixty," Shizuo answered shortly, his eyebrows furrowed with anger.

"And how many interviews have you landed?"

"Five."

Kasuka's tone did not change, and he showed absolutely no emotion – no sympathy, no pity, no sadness. But Shizuo liked this. He hated when people felt bad for him. He hated when they would give him words of sympathy. He didn't like to feel powerless. He hated their pity. But Kasuka was different. He skipped through the pity and sympathy and got down to business: how to improve the situation. And that's exactly what Shizuo wanted – needed – right now.

"Well, Shizuo, I can try again… I can try to refer you to more employers."

Shizuo was silent for a while before saying, "Do it quickly. I may be kicked out of my apartment soon. I can barely afford paying the rent…"

"You can always come live with m-"

"No."

"But Shizuo-"

"I said no. I won't be dependent on my younger brother."

Kasuka sighed before taking another sip of his coffee, commenting off-handedly, "This coffee is good…"

Shizuo nodded, saying reluctantly, not liking the idea of complimenting the raven's work. "I guess."

The barista came over and easily leaned against the side of Shizuo's chair, looking down at him and saying with a mocking form of gentleness, "So you can't find a job?"

Shizuo glared. "Why are you eavesdropping, you flea?!"

The barista played with his lip ring, his tongue skillfully fiddling with the accessory. "I wasn't eavesdropping. I'm just good at picking up information."

"What the fuck ever. Leave us alone."

The young man smirked widely as he said slyly, "Ah~, so it's _that _kind of rendezvous~."

It took Shizuo a while to understand, his eyebrows furrowing with confusion as he looked at Kasuka, but when Kasuka shook his head slowly, the blond finally understood what the raven standing beside him meant. "WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Shizuo exploded, standing and causing the table to wobble. Kasuka grabbed for the two cups of coffee, holding them steadily so they don't topple over.

Shizuo grabbed for the raven's collar and pulled him up, actually causing the smaller man's feet to lift off the ground, the dark-haired male smirking with amusement, really enjoying this. "He's my _brother_, you filthy pervert!"

"What would cause you to have such an outraged reaction~? Ah, maybe it's the same reason that causes little elementary school boys to turn red and stomp on the ground while screaming, 'NO! I don't love her!' when questioned about their feelings for the girl they obviously have a crush on. Hmmm, do you also pick on your brother~?"

"SHUT UP. Why the hell do you talk so much?!" Shizuo slammed the man's lithe body into the nearest wall. "Why don't you just fucking shut up?!"

To Shizuo's surprise, the young man actually let out a small sound of… was it pleasure…? The raven's eyes fluttered closed as he was slammed into the wall.

Shizuo's eyes narrowed, his suspicion about something being 'off' about this guy completely confirmed now. "What the hell…"

The attacked man's eyes finally opened, and he laughed gleefully, easily freeing himself from Shizuo's grasp and moving gracefully to stand behind him. "You know, I was just trying to help you~."

Shizuo turned around to be face-to-face with this odd person. "Help me? How so?"

The raven's tongue played with his lip ring again as he said, "Well~, I can easily get you a job. But since you're so insistent on abusing and hurting me, guess not." He shrugged as he began to saunter away, his smirk wide.

Shizuo was not going to fall for it. This person was suspicious, and he knew it. Any "job" this person has to offer was either illegal or nonexistent. Besides, he would never lay down his pride just to ask someone like him for help.

But Kasuka was the one who got up. "Please do help him find a job."

Shizuo was outraged. "What the hell, Kasuka?!"

The raven stopped in his steps, turning around slowly. "Oh~? So you want my help after all~?"

Simultaneously, Shizuo said, "NO" as Kasuka said, "Yes."

The barista smirked, saying playfully, "I'm confused here~! I don't know what to do~."

Shizuo finally relented, not wanting this day to end badly since Kasuka was obviously putting effort into making Shizuo feel better and get back up on his two feet. "Fine…"

The raven said cheerily, "Great! Well, my name is Orihara Izaya." He extended his hand out to Shizuo, and Shizuo hesitantly took and shook it, saying grumpily, "And mine is Heiwajima Shizuo."

"What an interesting name. Well, Shizu-chan, would you be-"

Shizuo released Izaya's hand, his eyes narrowing as he asked with anger, "Excuse me? Shizu-chan?"

"Hehe, sorry, it just slipped out."

"Don't let it slip out again. My name is Shizuo. Shi-zu-o. Not fucking Shizu-chan. Where the hell did you even get that shit from?"

"Okay, okay, Shizu-chan~."

Shizuo growled, his hands twitching as he reached out for Izaya, but Izaya effortlessly avoided him, moving his body to stand behind Shizuo, faster than Shizuo's eyes could see.

"The hell?!" Shizuo asked with outrage, whirling around to face Izaya.

"As I was saying, would you be interested in working as a bartender~? I see you're dressed in a bartender uniform, so I do believe it'd suit you."

Shizuo frowned and said, "I got fired from my last job as a bartender."

"That's okay. You can always try again~."

Shizuo's frown intensified, looking at the smaller male warily. "Why are you so concerned about finding me a job?"

Izaya shrugged, saying nonchalantly, "Just saw a human in need and decided to lend a helping hand."

Shizuo's eyebrow twitched. "I'm not a fucking homeless, starving, poor m-"

"Ah, so you're one of _those _people. Ashamed of and hateful towards pity."

The blond's eyes widened. _How the hell did he come to that conclusion so easily?_

"So hurry up and make your decision. The store will be full in just a few minutes, and I'll be busy with customers."

"Fine. I'll take the job."

Izaya pulled out his phone and pressed a few buttons. "Alright then. I have you scheduled for a job interview tomorrow at 3:00 PM. Be there on time."

"Huh? How'd you… set everything up so fast?"

Izaya smirked widely and said simply, "I have connections."


	2. Hired

The next day, Shizuo dragged himself out of bed and to the bathroom. He grumbled incoherently as he stepped into the shower, taking a quick shower before wrapping a towel around his waist. He sighed, running a hand through his wet hair, causing some droplets to move down his jawline and trail down his neck. He shook his head to chase away the tiredness and changed into his bartender outfit.

He then walked down the narrow hallway of his small apartment and stood in the kitchen. Opening the refrigerator, he found himself looking at only one thing: a carton of milk. He shrugged and grabbed for the carton, taking a swig from it with a pleased expression. He then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, pushed the carton back into the refrigerator, slipped on his shoes, and made his way out of the apartment.

Pulling out his phone, he checked the message that Izaya had sent him last night. _I don't even know how the hell he got my phone number_. Izaya had given him the address where the interview would be held along with some "tips" for a successful interview.

"_Dress to impress! Smile! Shake hands! Speak confidently! Focus on the positives instead of the negatives! Show them you ca-"_ Shizuo stuffed the small cell phone back into his pocket. Even _reading _the stupid barista's words pissed him off. He pulled out a cigarette and started smoking it to get the anger and Izaya out of his mind.

Finally, he reached the building where the interview was scheduled to be held. He tossed the cigarette onto the ground and stepped on it, putting it out before entering the building. He took a deep breath as he made his way to the office number specified in the text message: 401. The hallway was long and dark, the only sound being Shizuo's steady footsteps. When he finally reached the office, his suspicion was at full height, his eyes narrow and jaws clenched as he knocked on the door.

A soft, sly voice came from behind the door: "Come in~."

Shizuo's eyes narrowed even more as he opened the door, coming face-to-face with Izaya, who was sitting at the head of the table with a feral smile on his face.

"Welcome, Shizu-chan~. It's unfortunate that you're a minute late! You know, one of my tips was to be five to ten minutes early~."

Shizuo growled, "Maybe if I didn't get pissed halfway through the message, I would've actually read that." He finally looked around the table, seeing other people sitting around it. There were five people including the flea, and Shizuo nodded at them before taking a seat.

"Aawww, Shizu-chan! You didn't smile _or _shake hands with your interviewers."

The brute glared at the red-eyed man in front of him before saying, "Let's just get on with the interview."

One of the men finally spoke up. He looked to be quite older than the others around him, his black hair receding. His thin face held a grim expression on it, a scar near his left brow. When he spoke, everyone in the room went completely quiet. "Alright. We shall start the interrogating part of the interview now. Heiwajima Shizuo is your full name, correct?"

Shizuo nodded once.

"Very well. I'm Shiki." The man wrote something down on the piece of paper in front of him before asking, "Have you been a bartender before?"

Shizuo nodded again. "But I got fired."

"And why is that?"

"I'onno."

The man was silent for a while, eyeing Shizuo before writing something else down. "Why do you think you are the best candidate for this job?"

"I'm good at making drinks…"

"Any other reason?"

"I, erm, really like being a bartender."

"What is your availability?"

"Whenever you want. Nothing else taking up my time."

"Would you like to tell us anything else about yourself?"

"No, not really."

The man nodded. "Thank you, Heiwajima Shizuo. You may leave now. We will call you with our decision."

Shizuo stood and bowed slightly before exiting, grabbing a cigarette and smoking it as soon as he got outside.

Just then, his phone vibrated. He pulled the phone out and flipped it open. It was a text message from Izaya.

"You blew it, Shizu-chan! Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha hahhahahahahahahahahahahahah ahahahahahahahahahahahahahah aha"

He growled angrily and closed the phone, but another text message came. "Ran out of room in my last text! Here's the rest: Hahahahahhhahahahahahahhahah hahahahahahahahahahahahhahah ahahahahhahahahahahahahahaha hahah!"

Shizuo was raging now, glaring at the screen. His teeth were gritted in a way that would be painful for anyone who wasn't Shizuo Heiwajima, and his hands holding the phone were shaking with fury as he tried to calm himself down.

_Did he schedule that interview just to laugh at me?! I hate this guy!_

It took all his willpower not to storm back into that building and rip Izaya to shreds. Instead, he turned his phone completely off, stuffed it into his pocket, went back to his apartment, and took a nap.

By the time Shizuo woke up, it was dark outside. He groggily sat up in his bed, running a hand through his hair and slowly blinking. He reached over for his phone and turned it on, finding a text message, a missed call, and a voicemail – all from Izaya. He frowned, but his angry mood had faded away, so he decided to listen to the voicemail.

Izaya's teasing voice sounded through the phone as he said, "Good evening, Shizu-chan! I just called to let you in on some good news. Surprise! You got the job! See you tonight at 9:00 PM at the bar. I texted you the address. Don't be late now!"

Shizuo blinked and glanced at his alarm clock. "Shit." It was already 8:48 PM. He stumbled out of bed and tightened his belt that had been loosened before his nap, staggering to the bathroom. He washed his face and quickly left the apartment, opening the text message from Izaya as he made his way down the street. _Good. I know this street. It helps to know Ikebukuro like the back of your hands._

He finally reached the bar with just a minute to spare, standing in front of bodyguards. The sight was quite comical, with Shizuo towering over them.

"You gotta pay and show ID," one said, trying to feign confidence, but his voice was obviously shaking and stuttering.

"I work here as a bartender," Shizuo replied casually.

Just then, Shiki showed up behind the bartenders, a cigarette held between his index and middle fingers. "You may let him in, gentlemen," he said calmly, causing the bodyguards to immediately make way for Shizuo.

The tall blond confidently walked into the bar. He quickly skimmed the area, taking it all in. The bar was moderately sized, not too big and not too small. The setup wasn't too complicated, with tall wooden stools, chairs, and tables evenly spread out through the bar. There was a stage at the end with a live band performing. Some people were dancing, and some were even singing along with the band – majority of those people were drunk. The room was dimly lit, and strobe lights were rotating all around, a disco ball hung to the ceiling.

Shizuo finally made his way to the counter and quickly examined the drinks and beverages, trying to get used to the location and setup of everything.

Shiki appeared in front of him, now smoking his cigarette as he looks over at Shizuo quietly. When Shizuo finally noticed him standing, the older man said, "I shall now train you." He came around the counter to stand by Shizuo, gesturing towards a large row of drinks. "These are all the liquor bottles. You can read, so I don't assume I must do so for you."

Just then, a man came up to the bar. "Two caipirinhas, please."

Shiki slowly turned to Shizuo and smirked. "You said you're good at making drinks. Let's see how well you remember how to make a caipirinha."

Shizuo grunted, "That's easy." He looked through the rows of liquors, wines, and other beverages and finally found the bottle with cachaca. He grabbed for it and placed it on the table before lowering his head to find the seasonings and other fruits and vegetables. He grabbed for the fine sugar and two limes, placing them on the table as well.

A small smile spread across his face as he felt a sweet sense of nostalgia doing this all over again. He brought out two old-fashioned glasses and cut the limes into quarters, placing the wedges into the glass and then doing the same with the other lime, placing its wedges into the second glass. He then poured two teaspoons of the fine sugar into each glass and meddled them thoroughly. He then brought out the bucket of ice and filled the two glasses with ice. Finally, he poured the cachaca and stirred carefully before handing the man the two glasses. "There you go."

The man grinned happily, paid for the drink, and left a generous tip, leaving with the two glasses. He scooted close to a woman and handed her a glass, giving her a kiss on the cheek as he drank from his own glass.

Shizuo smiled proudly, looking at Shiki. "Good enough for ya?"

Shiki had a curious look on his face as he nodded slowly. "Very good…" he fixed his sleeve a little before saying, "Now, continuing the training… Down here are all the toppings, fruits, vegetables, and so on. You've already discovered that. Cherries, strawberries, limes, lemons… And the seasonings are right beside them. Cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar… And beside them are the food coloring. Sometimes we use that for, say, Valentine's day… We'll make beer red or pink or whatever people want."

Shizuo nodded, already knowing most of this.

Shiki moved a little to the side, pointing to a different section of the counter. "Now, we also have the grains right here. There's barley, wheat, rice, millet, and so on." He then moved a little to more to the side. "You've already discovered where the glasses are. But always make sure you serve the right glass. Whiskey glasses belong to whiskey. Martini glasses belong to martini. Wine glasses belong to wine. Simple. Don't get it confused."

Shizuo nodded again, also knowing this.

"And be careful with the flaming shots and drinks. Just… be careful. Don't be stupid with them." Shiki looked around one last time before sighing. "Alright, well, I guess that's it for now. Good luck." He nodded once and smoothly left the bar, leaving Shizuo by himself at the counter.


	3. Tested

Everything was going so well. All the customers were pleased, Shizuo was getting good tips, and he hadn't had a single outburst all night.

A small smile was on the blond bartender's face, a cigarette poking out of the side of his mouth as he prepared a glass of vodka for a beautiful young lady.

"Thank you~!" she said, giggling as she took the glass from him, making sure her fingertips touched the bartender's. She then walked away with her glass, heading to the table where her friends were waiting.

Shizuo sighed and ran a hand through his hair, pulling the cigarette out of his mouth to puff out smoke.

Just when it seemed everything was perfect, a certain raven-haired, red-eyed barista walked into the bar. It was as if the entire bar acknowledged his presence. Couples dancing against the wall paused to glance at him, friends stopped talking to eye him, and even drunks who were acting foolish toned down their foolishness as they gaped at Izaya Orihara.

He didn't acknowledge them with half the amount of attention they gave him, his deadly eyes focused on the bartender across the room.

Some people actually got up from their tables and left the bar, knowing the place became a hundred times more dangerous with Izaya occupying it.

"Dammit," Shizuo muttered under his breath, pulling out a cloth and wiping the counter as Izaya slowly approached him.

The flea took a seat at the stool right in front of Shizuo. "Good evening, Shizu-chan~."

Shizuo placed the wet cloth under the counter, not replying to Izaya and instead taking the order of someone behind him, "What can I getchya?"

"Banana daiquiri."

Shizuo nodded. Daiquiris were one of his favorite drinks because of their sweetness, so he knew how to make those very well.

He took out the bottle of light rum and the small bottle of triple sec. He then reached for the fruits, grabbing a banana and a cherry, and finally took out the lime juice and sugar.

Rummaging through the shelves, he had trouble finding what he needed, cursing under his breath.

"Electric blender's on the top right shelf," Izaya said smugly.

Shizuo glared and reached for the shelf, grabbing for the electric blender and connecting it to the outlet. After doing so, he poured in an ounce and a half of light rum, the same amount of lime juice, a tablespoon of triple sec, another tablespoon of sugar, and then added the banana. He then brought out the bucket of ice, filled a cup of it, and poured it into the blender, blending at a low speed for a few seconds and then at a higher speed. As he waited for the drink to blend, he could feel Izaya's eyes on him the entire time, but the bartender kept his own eyes focused on the blending drink, not wanting anything to do with this annoying flea.

When it was well-blended, he took out a champagne flute and poured the beverage into it, adding a cherry on top.

"Here you go," he said, passing the drink over and taking the money from the man.

"Keep the change as tip," the man said, taking his drink and leaving contentedly.

Shizuo nodded, charged the man at the cash register, and stuffed the change, quite a good amount of money, into his pocket.

_Dammit. It's close to closing time, so there aren't many customers. Now I'm stuck with this stupid flea._

"So, Shizu-chan," Izaya started, "how was your first day of work~?"

"It was good. Until now." Shizuo grabbed for the blender and washed it out, placing it back where it belonged.

"Aawww, why~?"

"Because you're here," Shizuo said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. His eyebrows furrowed as he asked, "Why the hell are you here?"

Izaya raised his eyebrow. "Well, I just got off work at the coffee shop, so I dropped by here to unwind. I come in here quite often. Or at least I used to. Heh, people actually adjusted to me not being here for quite a bit. I'm glad I returned to set things back in order."

"You chased away customers," Shizuo growled.

"I chased away weaklings," Izaya retorted, smirking proudly.

"Whatever," Shizuo grumbled. He moved away from the counter, busying himself with arranging some of the spirits lined up in a row to the side.

Just then, Shiki walked in with another man with sleek, red hair. Wearing colored sunglasses, he was dressed in a black suit with a red undershirt and holding an intricate, handcrafted cane in his right hand. The two men walked into the bar confidently. It was almost as if Izaya came to weed out the first half of weaklings, and Shiki and the red-headed man came to weed out the second half. There were still several people in the bar, but a lingering sense of danger and mistrust loomed over the room.

The two men sat beside Izaya. Shiki spoke first, saying politely, "Hello, Izaya."

"Hello, Shiki," replied Izaya, nodding at the red-head. "Hello, Akabayashi."

Akabayashi nodded once as he adjusted in his seat. Shizuo noticed the prominent scar on the man's right eye.

Shizuo nodded at the two men and asked, "Can I get you two anything to drink?"

Akabayashi shook his head, saying quietly, "No, thank you."

"I'll make your life easy. Just beer," said Shiki.

Shizuo brought out a beer glass and poured the beer out from the keg, handing Shiki the drink. Shiki handed Shizuo the money as well as a minimal tip.

The bartender placed the money into the cash register and stuffed the tip into his pocket. After a long moment of silence, Izaya said, "Aren't you going to ask me what I want to drink?"

Shizuo groaned, pulling the cigarette out of his mouth and pressing it into the ashtray, putting it out. "What do you want to drink?"

Izaya smiled gleefully, placing his elbows on the counter and cupping his face with his hands as he said, a teasing glint in his eyes, "I want a blue blazer."

Shizuo gawked. "What the hell, Izaya?! A blue blazer?!"

Izaya nodded quickly.

"That's a flaming drink. It's almost closing time."

Shiki cut in, "You must serve the customer whatever he or she likes, Shizuo…"

Akabayashi nodded slowly, looking curiously at Shizuo.

Shizuo sighed and brought out the bottle of Scotch. He then turned on the heating surface at the bar and placed a small pot of water on it, waiting for it to boil. As he waited for it to boil, he kept throwing dirty glares at Izaya, knowing the flea did this on purpose just to test out his skill and try to embarrass him in front of Shiki, the man who hired him.

Izaya maintained his gleeful smile, not once blinking or looking away from Shizuo.

When the water finally boiled, Shizuo brought out two silver mugs and poured an ounce and a half of the boiling water into one of the silver cups. He then added two ounces of Scotch and some sugar. _This is when being a smoker comes into use_, Shizuo thought as he pulled out his lighter and flicked it on. He tried to block everyone else out: Shiki, Akabayashi, Izaya… He tried to focus just on what he was doing right now. He knew his bartending skills were rusty, so he had to concentrate very hard to make this perfect. He brought the lighter close to the mix and kept the fire against it. Suddenly, it was on fire, and Shizuo quickly grabbed for the other silver mug. He then rolled the mix into the silver mug and skillfully poured it back and forth four times. There were a few flaws: some of the mix dripped onto his hand, the fire wavered slightly, and the pouring was too slow. But he did not mention them, and the people watching did not notice. He quickly poured the mix into yet another cup, added a lemon peel, and placed one of the silver mugs on top of it to extinguish the flame.

When he was finally finished, he passed the cup to Izaya. "There. Blue blazer."

Shiki held a neutral expression as he examined the drink, and Akabayashi looked quite impressed.

Izaya blinked several times. The gleeful smile had disappeared from his face, but he quickly forced it back on as he said, "Good job, Shizu-chan~! I'm so proud of you!"

Something told Shizuo the flea didn't actually mean that.


	4. Drunk

The night kept getting later, and Izaya sighed, his head leaning back to reveal a milky neck. "It's so hot in here," he said, his face flushed from both the heat and the alcohol in his drink.

"No," Shiki replied, "you're just drunk. This is your fifth drink."

Shizuo added with a grumble, "Your fifth _flaming _drink." _Damn drinks are hard to make. And he stopped giving me a tip after the first one. _

"Nnnn…" Izaya said, his eyes lidding as he crossed his leg and slowly started removing his fur-trimmed jacket. In his drunkenness, he didn't notice as the jacket fall to the ground. When it was off, he revealed what was underneath it: a tight-fitted, black tank top with a silver drawing of a vulture in the middle of it. The strobe lights shone down on his thin, bare arms, showing the sweat on them and outlining their slender shape.

"Ah, much better," he said, leaning back in his chair, his head lolling to the side as he watched a couple dancing against the wall. His tongue very slowly licked his black lip ring, his hands in his tight pockets, his thumb sticking out and rubbing slow circles against his small hips.

_Damn,_ thought Shizuo. _What's the flea doing? He's oozing sex appeal right now…_

And he blond wasn't the only one to notice this. Shiki and Akabayashi both had their eyes on the younger male, but he barely noticed, too drunk to pay attention to his surroundings.

He suddenly giggled, once, shortly, his chest rising and leg jerking slightly as he laughed at a man fall to the ground.

Shizuo turned his back to the people at the counter, already feeling his erection growing. _This is so weird… I never felt anything toward that disgusting flea. What the hell is going on? Why must he be "that" kind of drunk?!_

When he turned around, he caught sight of it. Shiki quickly, stealthily slipping something powdered into Izaya's drink.

The member of the underground organization had waited for Shizuo to turn around so that he could slip the drug into the drink. And he didn't see the blond turn back around and catch Shiki slipping the drug.

_What the fuck?_

Izaya didn't even come close to noticing. His head still lolled to the side, entertained by the people at the bar, a powder slipping into his drink was the last thing on his drunk mind. His long fingers wrapped around the silver mug as he sipped the drink.

It didn't seem like anything was off… He was acting normally (normally in Izaya's standards, at least), if one ignored his drunkenness.

Shizuo watched Izaya closely, though he didn't comment on the drug slipped into his drink. He needed this job, and he didn't care enough about Izaya to lose this job for standing up for him.

But he did watch him, making sure the barista didn't exhibit dangerous symptoms. Shiki and Akabayashi were obviously dangerous men; if something happened to Izaya, they could easily blame it on the best scapegoat – Shizuo, the bartender himself.

The three men at the counter were silent for a long time, Shiki smoking and Akabayashi watching the TV screen that was showing a live soccer game.

"Nnn…" Izaya said again, but there was something different about that sound effect this time. The male's round face flushed even more as he squirmed in his seat, his eyes fluttering closed as he softly gasped out.

_What… the… fuck…?_

If Shizuo had a slight erection a few minutes ago, he had a painful boner now. _God dammit… _

Shiki turned to look at Izaya, but he said nothing, still smoking his cigarette as he watched the younger, drunk male writhe on the seat.

Akabayashi's eyes strayed away from the TV to land on Izaya, and he let out a small chuckle as he nudged Shiki. Shiki smirked at him before going back to watching Izaya.

And then it all finally made sense to Shizuo.

Shiki had slipped in a drug to increase Izaya's sexual desire.

Shizuo did not know what to do, and he didn't know why this was happening. Did Shiki want to have sex with Izaya? Did he want to publically embarrass him? Because the latter was definitely working. People had turned around to stare at the dark-haired male who was letting out soft gasps and moans as he squirmed and writhed on the tall bar stool.

Shiki reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He pointed it at Izaya and began recording the oblivious male.

_We're getting into some dangerous territory here_, Shizuo thought, knowing the situation just got extremely serious. A video like this can utterly destroy someone's life.

Even if Izaya wasn't drunk, he still wouldn't have known what was going on. His eyes were now closed and head leaned back.

When he finally opened his eyes, the crimson orbs locked on Shizuo, filled with lust and need.

_But surely none of that is directed toward me. The flea hates me just as much as I hate him. _

As if he knew Shizuo needed to be saved, a man came up to him and said, "Whiskey on the rocks."

Shizuo nodded and began making it, handing it to the man and taking the money with the tip from him. When his eyes went back to the three men sitting in front of him, he caught sight of Shiki running a long, thin finger down Izaya's throat, which was flushed along with the rest of his forcefully aroused body.

"Nh," Izaya choked out, his hand fumbling as it wrapped around Shiki's wrist and pulled his hand away, his mouth tilted open as gasps and soft, barely audible moans slipped out.

Shiki chuckled and looked up at Shizuo, saying, "I don't know what's wrong with him. Such an odd drunk…"

Shizuo didn't say anything, clearing a few things off the counter.

Finally, Shiki and Akabayashi stood up. "We need to deal with a few things. We'll be back," Shiki said, looking down at Izaya and placing a finger under his chin, tilting the dark-haired male's head up to look at him. "You stay here. Akabayashi is your ride home." He then looked up at Shizuo and said, "Make sure he stays until we come back. We won't take long."

Shizuo nodded. The two underground organization members smoothly walked out of the bar. It was actually closing time now, and more people were filing out.

_Does he mean for me to keep him here even after I've closed down?_

After half an hour, the blond and the black-haired male were alone in the dark, silent bar. A small gasp would sometimes escape Izaya's mouth, but other than that, the two were quiet. Shizuo finally said, avoiding Izaya's eyes, "Well, I guess I'll head home now."

Izaya's red eyes widened as he said, "H-huh? You're… going to leave me here…?"

"I donno how long those two will take before they come back, and I don't wanna wait here for too long. Besides, you're a grown man. You can take care of yourself."

Izaya pouted as he said, "But… How about you give me a ride home?"

"I don't have a car," Shizuo grumbled.

"I do… I'll give you the keys…"

Confused about the male's persistence, Shizuo looked into Izaya's eyes, and in their red depths, behind the lustful, drunken haze, there was fear. Izaya knew something horrible was going to happen to him if he stayed here alone to wait for the two Awakusu-kai members.

And Shizuo didn't like violence. He did not like for others to be hurt. He knew this might cost him his job… He knew Shiki and Akabayashi would be angry at him for doing this.

But he also knew he couldn't bear the thought of being the cause for someone getting hurt.

So he took the keys that Izaya extended to him and ran a hand through his blond hair, saying with a loud exhale, "Alright, let's go."


End file.
